Southern Railway, a unit of Indian Rail, has launched a tender for the installation of train protection and warning systems (TPWS) on three key suburban routes, according to Railway Technology.
Southern Railway chief signal and telecom engineer S Manohar told The Hindu: "We have reached tendering phase for TPWS installation on new sectors as we now have a robust framework of specs and a custom-fit version of the technology for Indian conditions."
TPWS, which is currently installed on the 48km Chennai Beach-Central-Gummidipoondi EMU line, will be extended to the 68km Beach-Arakkonam section, 150km Arakkonam-Jolarpettai route and 60km Beach-Tambaram-Chengalpattu line.
The TPWS will be based on European rail traffic management system (ERTMS-Level 1) technology, which will create a signalling loop to warn train drivers about the obstacles ahead, as well as control train speeds in case of emergency.
TPWS will provide additional safety through an automatic signal circuit, while it also includes on-board computer consoles for driver-machine interfaces.
The system will be connected to wireless track-side balise devices that employ electromagnetic induction and can change the traffic light from green to red if a train is crossing a signal or speeding.
It will also activate the train braking system automatically if the driver fails to notice the warning signs, as well as help to regulate speed if a train is travelling too fast when approaching certain speed restrictions.
According to reports, the TPWS will be deployed along the suburban routes at an estimated cost of INR1.8bn ($31.9m).